In William Faulkner s novel, As I Lay Dying, the plot of the story can be easily summarized. Addie Bundren dies, her husband, Anse, and her children Cash, Darl, Jewel, Dewey, Dell, and Var daman surmount numerous obstacles to trasnport her rotting corpse to her family s plot in Jefferson where, in accord with her wishes, she is finally buried ten days after her death. Although the novel contains a simple plot, the characters possess complex personalities that provide the true beauty of the novel. The individual thoughts of the characters are captured by the first-person narration and alternation of viewpoint for the effect of richness and complexity. The true personality of each character is displayed by the intimate thought and feelings.
Sometimes, the character s behavior might appear to be noble to the public, from his thoughts, the reader realizes his action is accompanied by other hidden motives. Using the method of the first-person narration, Faulkner allowed the readers to witness the true motives of each character s action, including Addie and through the character s thoughts, the reader recognize the impact of one another action on their lives. This way, the reader can achieve an accurate understanding of each character. The central image of the novel is the human corpse.
All the events that occurred are as consequences of the death of Addie Bundren. Although dead, Addie dominates the action of both her husband and children. In a way, her death was her method of obtaining revenge on her husband. Addie s marriage to Anse was frustrating. She distrusted the words Anse had spoken to her, especially the word Love. She felt that that word was like the others: just a shape to fill a lack: that when the right time came, you wouldn t need a wprdfor that anymore than for pride or fear To Addie, Anse, who seems nothing but the shape and echo of his word is dead for her long before she is for him, only he did not know he was dead.
The Essay on All the King’s Men – Reader Thoughts
It is extremely hard to sit down and write a review for any piece of classic literature for there is very little a reviewer can say that is new. Of course, for a book to be considered a classic most of its reviewers have to have had a favorable opinion of the work and all a new reviewer can do is concur or disagree. In this case, I couldn't possibly agree more with previous reviewers who have ...
Unsatisfied with her marriage and life, Addie seeks her happiness through a love affair with Whitfield. The result of the affair was the birth of Jewel, whom Addie regards as he r only real child. By committing adultery, she reinforces her view of the gap between word and deeds and discovers the emptiness of the word sin. Her death was her final attemp for revenge, a rotting corpse that mocks and nearly overwhelms its bearers.
The death of Addie has the most impact on the behavior of Darl. On her last day, Darl was sent to deliver some lumber for three dollars. His unwillingness to leave was nevertheless overshadowed by his father s greed for money. Although unable to be present by his mother s deathbed, Darl s intuition allowed him to witness the death in detail and observe the family s reaction.
Even though Darl showed great respect for Addie, he tried to rid the Bundren of their mother s corpse during their trip to Jefferson. He regarded the whole enterprise as folly. Buzzards have begun to follow the horrible smell that the coffin exudes and the people of the countryside are outraged by what is going on. Common sense and community opinions are on Darl s side, yet the family disapproved his actions.
When the corpse was lost in the flood, Darl refused to help rescue it. He also set Gillespie s barn on fire in his attemp of destroying the corpse. Darl show mixed feelings about Addie because she never accepted, nor loved him. Her indifference towards Darl results in his experiences of isolation and alienation. Darl knows that he has no mother, and therefore he cannot love her, but not because he does not want to. He tries to seek Addie s love from Jewel.
Darl is eventually struck with madness and is taken to an insane asylum.
